God loves us very much!\par And God will be true to us forever!\par Praise the Lord!\par \par \par
Colossians 3:11 - Easy To Read Version In the new life there is no difference between Greeks and Jews. There is no difference between people that are circumcised {\cf2\super [16]} and people that are not circumcised, or people that are from some foreign country, or Scythians. {\cf2\super [17]} There is no difference between slaves and free people. But Christ is in all those believers. And Christ is all that is important. Tuilleadh leaganachaKing James Version (Oxford) 1769 where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all. Amplified Bible - Classic Edition [In this new creation all distinctions vanish.] There is no room for and there can be neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, [nor difference between nations whether alien] barbarians or Scythians [who are the most savage of all], nor slave or free man; but Christ is all and in all [everything and everywhere, to all men, without distinction of person]. American Standard Version (1901) where there cannot be Greek and Jew, circumcision and uncircumcision, barbarian, Scythian, bondman, freeman; but Christ is all, and in all. Common English Bible In this image there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all things and in all people. Catholic Public Domain Version where there is neither Gentile nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian nor Scythian, servant nor free. Instead, Christ is everything, in everyone. Douay-Rheims version of The Bible - 1752 version Where there is neither Gentile nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian nor Scythian, bond nor free. But Christ is all, and in all. |
God loves us very much!\par And God will be true to us forever!\par Praise the Lord!\par \par \par
“You are a very important servant to me.\par The people of Israel are prisoners,\par but they will be brought back to me.\par Jacob’s family groups will come back to me.\par But, you have another job;\par it is even more important than this!\par I will make you a light for all nations.\par You will be my way to save\par all the people on earth.”\par
The Lord will show his holy strength\par to all the nations.\par All the faraway countries will see\par how God saves his people.\par
Lord, you are my strength\par and my protection.\par You are a safe place to run to\par in time of trouble.\par The nations will come to you\par from all around the world.\par They will say,\par “Our fathers had false gods.\par They worshiped those worthless idols,\par but those idols did not help them at all.”\par
You will divide it as a property for yourselves and for the foreigners who live among you and who have had children among you. These foreigners will be residents—they will be like natural born Israelites. You will divide some land for them among the family groups of Israel.
I will sow her many seeds {\cf2\super [21]} on her land.\par To Lo-Ruhamah, {\cf2\super [22]} \par I will show mercy.\par To Lo-Ammi, {\cf2\super [23]} \par I will say, ‘You are my people.’\par And they will say to me,\par ‘You are my God.’”\par
{\cf2\super [119]} Then the people left alive in Edom,\par and all the people called by my name,\par will look to the Lord \{for help\}.”\par The Lord said those things,\par and he will make them happen.\par
People from many nations will go there.\par They will say,\par “Come, let’s go up to the Lord’s mountain.\par Let’s go to the temple of the God of Jacob.\par Then God will teach us his way of living.\par And we will follow him.”\par
At that time, people from many nations\par will come to me.\par They will become my people.\par And I will live in your city.”\par And then you will know\par that the Lord All-Powerful sent me.\par
“People all around the world respect my name. All around the world people bring good gifts to me. They burn good incense {\cf2\super [7]} as a gift to me. Why? Because my name is important to all those people.” The Lord All-Powerful said these things.
Jesus answered, “If any person loves me, then he will obey my teaching. My Father will love that person. My Father and I will come to that person and live with him.
“I am the vine and you are the branches. If a person continues in me and I continue in that person, then that person will make much fruit. But without me that person can do nothing.
I will be in them, and you will be in me. So they will be completely one. Then the world will know that you sent me. And the world will know that you loved these people the same as you loved me.
Then all other people will look for the Lord (God)—\par all the non-Jewish people that are\par my people too.\par The Lord (God) said this.\par And he is the One who does\par all these things.\par \i (Amos 9:11-12)\i0 \par
It was raining and very cold. But the people that lived there were very good to us. They made a fire for us and welcomed all of us.
The people living on the island saw the snake hanging from Paul’s hand. They said, “This man must be a murderer! He did not die in the sea, but Justice {\cf2\super [519]} does not want him to live.”
I must serve all people—Greeks and non-Greeks, wise people and foolish people.
That Scripture says “any person” because there is no difference between Jew and non-Jew. The same Lord is the Lord of all people. The Lord gives many blessings to all people that trust in him.
God makes people right through their faith in Jesus Christ. God does this for all people that believe in Christ. All people are the same.
A person is a true Jew only if he is a Jew inside. True circumcision is done in the heart. It is done by the Spirit, {\cf2\super [24]} not by the written law. And a person that is circumcised in the heart by the Spirit gets praise from God, not from people.
Some of us are Jews and some of us are Greeks (non-Jews); some of us are slaves and some of us are free. But we were all baptized {\cf2\super [86]} into one body through one Spirit. {\cf2\super [87]} And we were all given {\cf2\super [88]} the one Spirit.
So if I don’t understand the meaning of what a person says to me, then I think that he talks strange, and he thinks that I talk strange.
It is not important if a person is circumcised or not circumcised. The important thing is obeying God’s commands.
So the life that I live now is not really me—it is Christ living in me. I still live in my body, but I live by faith in the Son of God (Jesus). Jesus is the One who loved me. He gave himself to save me.
When a person is in Christ Jesus, it is not important if he is circumcised or not. The important thing is faith—the kind of faith that works through love.
The church is Christ’s body. The church is filled with Christ. He makes everything complete in every way.
Because of Christ we now have peace. Christ made us both (Jews and non-Jews) one people. The Jews and the non-Jews were separated like there was a wall between them. They hated each other. But Christ broke down that wall of hate by \{giving\} his own body.
The Jewish law had many commands and rules. But Christ ended that law. Christ’s purpose was to make the two groups of people (Jews and non-Jews) become one new people in him. By doing this Christ would make peace.
I pray that Christ will live in your hearts because of your faith. I pray that your life will be strong in love and be built on love.
This is that secret truth: that the non-Jews will get the things God has for his people, the same as the Jews. The non-Jews are together with the Jews in the same body. And they share together in the promise that God made in Christ Jesus. The non-Jews have all these things because of the Good News. {\cf2\super [23]}
Remember that the Lord will give every person a reward for doing good. Every person, slave or free, will get a reward for the good things he does.
And in Christ you are full. You need nothing else. Christ is ruler over all rulers and powers.
But, dear friends, use your most holy faith to build yourselves up strong. Pray with the Holy Spirit. {\cf2\super [10]}